With Honor: Army Spec. Alex Jimenez, Pvt. Byron Fouty
The discovery of a U.S. soldier’s remains in Iraq spelled heartache last night for a Queens mother, who had prayed for more than a year that her son would return to her alive.
Maria del Rosario Duran’s hope dissolved into pain when military brass broke the news to her Thursday that her son, Army Spec. Alex Jimenez, would be coming home in a coffin.
Queens mother’s hope gone as G.I. son’s remains found in Iraq
Jimenez, 25, a member of the New York-based 10th Mountain Division, had been listed as missing in action since his Humvee unit was ambushed May 12, 2007, in Iraq’s infamous “Triangle of Death.”
Insurgents launched a hellish attack on the unit with rocket-propelled grenades and small-arms fire, killing five U.S. soldiers and taking three, including Jimenez, captive.
The body of one of the missing soldiers, Pfc. Joseph Anzack, 20, of Torrance, Calif., was pulled from the Euphrates River about a week after the attack.
Military officials told Duran that the badly decomposed remains of her son and of Pvt. Byron Fouty, 19, of Waterford, Mich., were discovered in May near where they were ambushed.
After tests in Iraq, the soldiers’ remains were positively identified this week.
I was blessed and honored to attend the services for Army Sgt. Alex Jimenez and met his sweet mother, fiercely loving brothers, along with Pvt. Byron Fouty’s warm, step father.
Mourners swept through the streets of Queens, NY. Flags lined the streets, guiding mourners all along the route.
His parents, his widow and hundreds of friends and neighbors walked in the milelong procession.
Army Sgt. Alex Jimenez was captured in May of 2007 and had been missing for 14 long months.
424 days.
For all of those 14 months, his loving family, brothers, cousins and friends united in prayer and support, hoping that Staff Sgt. Alex Jimenez would one day return home alive. 
Army Sgt. Alex Jimenez’s family had been agonizing over his possible fate, while the Army searched relentlessly for him and Fouty.
The bodies of Army Sgt. Jimenez and Specialist Byron J. Fouty were found on July 8.
The family’s hopes were now dashed when they learned that their remains had been found.
To the loving parents and family:
May your Hero sons be cradled in the good Lord’s gentle arms and know peace forever.
The very peace they fought so valiantly for…… not for themselves, but for us.
Their selfless sacrifice is the purest form of love.
I pray that in your profound sorrow, Alex, Joseph and Byron’s loved ones - you feel also the great pride of knowing that your child stood for Freedom in all lands, defending their country, and standing up for the rights of others.
There remains no higher calling and yet……… there was no greater price.
I have nothing but respect and gratitude that you raised sons so moral and strong. Thank you for allowing me to be a part of your lives.
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:52 am
I think of a hero as someone who understands the degree of responsibility that comes with his freedom.
Bob Dylan
They come from all walks of life,
Never seeking tribute for doing what was thought right,
Just going forward regardless the danger’s rife,
Knowing that ultimate fate could come any day or night.
These are the ones who came to sow,
Seeds of freedom, liberty, justice and more,
To a new land many years ago,
That became what all who declared and fought for.
These are the ones who bled,
In the wars against tyranny,
Leaving the battlefields stained red,
Oh, so young and many.
These are the ones who protect,
From fire, disaster, and the lawless,
Going wherever to detect,
Keeping our country safe from duress.
These are the ones who explore,
Beyond earth’s reach,
Into the stars they soar,
Allowing our dreams to go beyond the breach.
All are what make our country proud,
Passing the honor, duty, and courage test,
Making it easy to praise them loud,
As they are our heroes, America’s best!
May he Rest In Peace….and GOD bless him and America
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:18 am
My prayers go out to the family. May G-d guide and comfort them. May He bring them solace in this time of grief.
August 3rd, 2008 at 1:32 am
God bless the families of these men. And may the murderers that took their lives pay the price.
August 3rd, 2008 at 7:39 am
Bless him and his family.
August 3rd, 2008 at 9:24 am
Angel, this was a very warm tribute. Thank you for all the soldiers everywhere.
August 3rd, 2008 at 10:07 am
What a beautiful tribute, Angel. The pictures are so poignant and powerful. Prayers up for their families.
(And Perri, I’m with you about their murderers…)
August 3rd, 2008 at 12:22 pm
If you’ve ever seen one of Great Satan’s Army drill sergeant NCO’s on TV or in the flesh - you’ll notice a really cool badge they wear that shows Great Satan’s Constitution as an ancient body armour breast plate, a torch, a vigilant serpent and 13 stars repping the 13 colonies emblazoned with the totally correct and historically proven motto “This We’ll Defend”
And it really hits home. Great Satan truly faces a despicable enemy.
There are moments that throw the nature of America’s enemies into the sharpest possible relief.
It’s the smallest of comforts that the country may now never know what, precisely, the pair endured in captivity.
Captured Americans in Iraq have been subject to all means of torture - including public beheading - in the furtherance of militants’ sick propaganda aims.
Such brutality turned Iraqis against al Qaeda en masse - as soon as American resolve gave them the chance.
It also gives lie to the tired cliché that America somehow loses its “moral standing” by, say, keeping terrorists locked up at Gitmo.
Actually, it speaks to the night-and-day difference in honor and decency between America and her enemies - a difference that Sgt. Jimenez and Pfc. Fouty gave their lives to defend.
Rest in peace.
August 3rd, 2008 at 3:34 pm
God bless them and their families Angel. And thank you for representing all of us who could not be there. You are our emissary.
August 3rd, 2008 at 5:22 pm
A beautiful tribute Angel. May God bring peace to their families. And may we be ever mindful of those still in harm’s way and lift them up in prayer daily.
August 3rd, 2008 at 7:08 pm
Isn’t it nearly impossible to look into those men’s (boys, really) faces and know they’re gone?
My buddy, a 21 yr old from our church named MATT MULLIGAN, goes to Marine boot camp on August 10th. Please keep him in your prayers….doesn’t a war turn personal when you KNOW someone who’s going? This is just a friend!!!…if he were my son, the air would be sucked out of me………. May God be with those families you’ve mentioned here….it’s almost too much to imagine.
Please check out the letter I published today, Angel…at my blog. .from a soldier who has an incredible spirit and amazing story to tell of how we’re doing over there. Well worth it, I think. I just got it from his mother yesterday.
August 3rd, 2008 at 7:09 pm
Oh, and KarlM? I honestly didn’t know Dylan had that in him.
August 3rd, 2008 at 7:29 pm
What a beautiful tribute Angel. I will pray for the families left behind to carry on. How hard these days ahead will be and may G-d give them the grace and His peace to endure it. G-d bless all our soldiers, those passed on and those still with us fighting so that we can live free.
August 3rd, 2008 at 8:16 pm
Rest in peace, soldiers.
August 3rd, 2008 at 10:26 pm
I pray for our troops, our country, our President and our allies (especially Israel) every night before bed!
August 4th, 2008 at 7:22 am
Thanks for that beautiful tribute, Angel. It’s young men like these who are the real America and on their sacrifice we all stand in peace and safety. I hope we never forget.
August 4th, 2008 at 9:19 am
Excellent and tasteful. Rest in Peace and prayers to the families of all the service men and women that are in harms way.
August 4th, 2008 at 9:41 am
hosha na, Moshiach.
August 4th, 2008 at 11:23 am
Godspeed, true defenders of our liberty. Thank you for lending your time, support and presence, Angel. May our would be appeasers find enough God sent grace to feel deserved shame.
August 4th, 2008 at 12:56 pm
DI… unfortunately I don’t believe our would be appeasers even know the meaning of shame.
Angel, this is indeed a warm and wonderful tribute, girlfriend. May God rest his sould and help his family with their grief. God bless him and them and you as well. You do good work!
August 4th, 2008 at 5:01 pm
Amazing post Angel, thanks for sharing.
August 4th, 2008 at 7:45 pm
I am wordless.
August 4th, 2008 at 7:48 pm
WOW. What a post. I had watery eyes all the way through it. I agree with all of the sentiment here and appreciate you sharing this. We all need reminders daily of the sacrifices made on our behalf! God bless his family. I believe in his cause and that he did not die in vain. I thank him for my very freedom…:)N
August 4th, 2008 at 10:19 pm
BLESS YOU ALL FOR YOUR BEAUTIFUL WORDS.
August 4th, 2008 at 11:49 pm
Beautiful post Angel..prayers for their families and all our boys and girls fighting for our freedom.
And maybe we should start dumping all our captives into the river. Animals.
August 5th, 2008 at 6:41 pm
There are no words in human language to say how the lives, service, and sacrifice of our soldiers and their families make me feel. Thanks for the tribute.